LOS ANGELES - UCLA men's water polo head coach Adam Wright has captured MPSF Coach of the Year honors, as announced by the conference office Tuesday. Wright becomes the program's first coach to earn the annual award since Guy Baker in 1995.

Wright has guided UCLA to a 23-4 overall record this season, its second MPSF Tournament title in the last three years and an automatic berth in this weekend's NCAA Tournament.

A former standout for the Bruins from 1997-2000, Wright played under head coach Guy Baker during his freshman and sophomore seasons (1997, 1998). Baker captured MPSF Coach of the Year honors in 1995, having led the Bruins to a 20-6 overall record and the NCAA Championship that season.

UCLA entered last weekend's MPSF Tournament as the No. 3 seed and earned the conference title after having won three games in overtime in as many days. Serving as tournament host, UCLA claimed the championship in thrilling fashion late Sunday afternoon with a 10-9 sudden-victory overtime win over crosstown rival USC.

Wright has helped lead the UCLA men's water polo program to four NCAA Tournament appearances - two as a player on the 1999 and 2000 NCAA Championship teams, and two as the program's head coach (2009, 2011).

UCLA enters the upcoming NCAA Tournament as the No. 2 seed and will face No. 3-seed UC San Diego on Saturday, Dec. 3. Game time at California's Spieker Aquatic Complex is 3 p.m. No. 1-seed USC will take on No. 4-seed Princeton in the other semifinal match Saturday at 1 p.m.